Quebec cracking down on crowded malls, stores during holiday shopping season

Quebec is tightening the health guidelines for stores and malls for the holiday shopping season in an attempt to limit the transmission of the coronavirus.

Deputy Premier Genevive Guilbault said Wednesdayshe wants Quebecers to be able to shop for loved ones in a safe environment.

The measures include:

• A maximum capacity of customers based on floor space available to customers. The capacity must be displayed at the front of the store or shopping mall.
• Signs about distancing rules to ensurecompliance while shopping and waiting in line.
• Clear markings so that shoppers can more easily navigate the store.

Guilbault acknowledgedthat many shopping venues already have thesemeasures in place. But she saidthose that don't risk being fined up to $6,000 or closed altogether.

She said police and workplace safety inspectors would increase their presence in shopping districts during the holiday period.

The province reported a record 1,514 cases on Wednesday, the highest daily total since the start of the pandemic, along with 43 deaths.

Dr. Horacio Arruda, the province's public health director,said earlier this week that shopping malls have not been a major driverof COVID-19 outbreaks but he said stricter guidelines would ensure that remains the case.